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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/26708953">Brighter Than The Sun</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kalcifer/pseuds/Kalcifer'>Kalcifer</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Persona 4</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Canon Compliant, F/F, Festivals, Fluff</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-09-29</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-09-29</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-18 10:48:04</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>2,252</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/26708953</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kalcifer/pseuds/Kalcifer</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Teddie's plan is fine and all, but Yukiko and Chie would much rather explore the festival by themselves.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Amagi Yukiko/Satonaka Chie</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>2</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>31</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Brighter Than The Sun</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>This was originally written for the Twin Dragons zine, and while unfortunately the zine itself has been canceled, I still had a great time seeing everyone's takes on the girls. Be sure to support the other artists and writers who might be posting their works now too!</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>Chie wasn’t thrilled about being stuck with Teddie for the whole festival, but at least they weren’t talking about splitting up by gender anymore. The only good memories she needed were of Yukiko’s face when Chie won her some kind of cool prize. (And okay, fine, maybe her yukata too. Chie was dating the most beautiful girl in Inaba, she was allowed to appreciate that.)</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Even so, she was caught off-guard when Rise pulled Teddie to a </span>
  <em>
    <span>katanuki </span>
  </em>
  <span>stand as soon as they were out of the guys’ eyeshot. “Hey, Teddie, you’ve got claws, right? How good are you at cutting things out?” Rise asked.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“What kind of bear do you think I am?” Teddie puffed out his chest. “I’m the best at it!”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Wow, really? Could you show me?” Rise’s eyes were wide and idol-bright.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>It was too innocent an expression to trust, so of course Teddie fell for it right away. “Leave it to me, Rise-chan. I’ll show you my dexterity!” He pushed his way to the front of the stand.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Rise followed and made sure he’d paid. When he was thoroughly preoccupied, she turned back to Chie and Yukiko and winked. They stared at her blankly.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Rise rolled her eyes. “Have a good date!” she mouthed. She made a shooing motion in their direction.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Yukiko was the first to catch on. She grabbed Chie’s arm and raced down the row of stalls. Chie, still trying to catch up to this chain of events, could only be impressed at how easily Yukiko moved in her yukata. Chie was fighting not to trip in hers.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>They ducked into a gap between two stalls, where Yukiko promptly defeated the point of hiding by going into a laughing fit. “Can you imagine… Teddie’s face… when he realizes?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Chie couldn’t fight down a smile of her own. “I’m sure Rise will have a good explanation for him.” She shook her head. “And maybe one for us, too. Did you know she was going to do this?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Yukiko took a few seconds to calm down. When her laugh had petered out, she said, “Not at all. I’d just assumed we’d be going around with the whole group.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Me too. Honestly, though, this is better.” Chie ducked her head. She still wasn’t used to being able to express affection so straightforwardly, much less in an explicitly romantic context.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yeah.” Yukiko paused as a thought occurred to her. “But, Chie, we go to this festival together every year. How do we make it special this time?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>It was a problem they’d encountered many times before. Their relationship had grown so naturally (other dimensions and magical powers aside) that it was hard to draw a line between the things they’d done before and what they did now that they were dating. For the most part, Chie didn’t worry about it. Spending time with Yukiko was good no matter how you put it.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>But today was a festival. The atmosphere was super romantic, and they’d gone to the effort of dressing up. It would be a waste to treat it like every other time they’d been.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Chie didn’t have anything particular in mind, so she suggested the first thing that popped into her head. “We could always hold hands?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Once she’d said it, she realized how childish it sounded. Heat rose to her cheeks. She was about to play it off as a joke, but Yukiko beat her to it. “That’s a great idea!” Yukiko said. Then she frowned. “Oh, wait, but I wanted to get yakisoba. If I’m holding your hand and the chopsticks, where will I put the noodles?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“We can let go when we need to, you know.” Chie tried to sound calm and reasonable and not even a little ridiculously excited. “I just meant while we’re walking around and stuff. I don’t think you can play most of the games with one hand anyway.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You’re right,” Yukiko said. For a moment, she looked disappointed. Chie’s leg bounced a little from sheer happiness that Yukiko was as invested in this dumb idea as she was. “So, um, I guess we should get started now?” She held out her hand.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Chie took it without hesitation. For the longest time, the gesture had been natural, children clinging to each other for reassurance or support or simple acknowledgment of their existences. Then they got older and people’s expectations got heavier. Yukiko’s beauty was a promise her behavior had to fulfill, while Chie’s hobbies were a thing to atone for. Chie was glad they’d found their way back here. Even after years of misunderstanding and doubt, Yukiko’s hand felt right in hers.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“All right,” she said. “What do you want to do first?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I want to try the shooting gallery,” Yukiko said. Her expression was fierce and determined.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Great, let’s go.” This time, Chie got to be the one to pull Yukiko through the crowd.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>One of the few benefits of such a small, local festival was that things didn’t move much from year to year. Chie hadn’t bothered with the shooting gallery for a few years now, but she’d loved it when she was younger, and tracing her way back to it was easy. It looked pretty much like she remembered - a bright plastic wheel, spinning fast enough that the wedges of color began to blur together, with some equally neon plastic dart guns sitting on the counter in front of it. The stand’s owner smiled at her as they got closer. “Oh, it’s been a while,” the old woman said. “Have you spent all this time training to get the prize you always wanted?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Actually, I’m the one playing,” Yukiko said. She pulled her wallet from her sleeve and paid the woman. “And I’m definitely going to get the prize I want.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Yukiko’s stance as she assessed the wheel was familiar, the patterns ingrained in her body from fighting Shadows. When she was ready to strike, her movements were sharp and self-assured as she brought the gun up and pulled the trigger.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The dart landed directly in the green wedge of the wheel. Yukiko frowned and aimed again, this time hitting the pink slice. She rounded it off with a shot directly to the yellow, ensuring she would win nothing at all.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Better luck next time,” the stall’s owner said sympathetically.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Luck?” If they’d been in the TV world, the fire in Yukiko’s eyes would have lent itself to a potent Maragion. “I shouldn’t need luck. I should be able to tear this wheel in half.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The old woman frowned.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“If only you could use your fan,” Chie joked, hoping to defuse the situation.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Yukiko just looked thoughtful. “That’s a good idea.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Chie grabbed her hand again, hoping this time she wasn’t quite so red. “Or, um, actually, I could really go for a candy apple right now. Do you want a candy apple? Let’s go get some.” She tugged Yukiko into the aisle.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Yukiko fell into step beside her with ease. “That does sound nice,” she said. “But I wanted to win you something…”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Chie’s heart fluttered, something she had always thought was cliche but turned out to feel really nice. She knew Yukiko loved her, as unbelievable as it seemed, but she was still caught off guard every time she did something to show it. She was smiling so hard it almost hurt. “Aw, thank you! I don’t need a festival prize, though.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I know. I just thought it would be nice.” Yukiko looked downcast. Chie nearly turned back to try the game herself, as if winning a prize so Yukiko could give it to her would mean anything.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Fortunately, they’d made it to a stall selling desserts, so she was able to distract them both by reading off the menu. “Hey, it looks like they’ve got candy apples and chocolate covered bananas! Nice.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Oh, I’m so bad at keeping the bananas from falling off the stick, though. I don’t want to ruin my yukata.” Yukiko squinted at the bananas on display. “Do you think these ones look all right?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Probably?” Chie shrugged. “It’s worth a shot, anyway. Besides, it’s my treat.” She ordered and paid before Yukiko could get out her wallet.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Sweets in hand, they wandered aimlessly for a bit. Yukiko managed to eat her banana without getting any on herself, though its balance was precarious at the end, and Chie eagerly devoured her candy apple. She was just getting to the core when Yukiko gasped. “It’s the goldfish scooping game!”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Chie laughed and headed in the direction Yukiko was pointing. “It’s here every year, you don’t have to act all surprised.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yeah, but most years I have to put the fish back, since I can’t keep them at the inn. And if you can’t form a bond with your new fish, you’re missing out on half the fun.” Yukiko’s voice was firm. Chie didn’t get it, but she didn’t have to. If Yukiko wanted to scoop some goldfish, Chie would be right beside her.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>They got their scoopers and knelt beside the pool. As the experienced goldfish scooper who’d brought goldfish home for three years running, Chie took it upon herself to give Yukiko some tips. “Remember, you don’t want to put the scoop into the water for as long as possible so it doesn’t rip. And the fish are faster than you think, so once you do have it in, you need to be quick. Got it?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Got it.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Good. Now watch the master at work.” Chie leaned over the pool and watched the goldfish intently. They’d noticed the bowl she’d placed in the water and begun to scatter, but not all of them were as quick as they needed to be. One small fish was headed towards the wall of the pool at only half its friends’ speed.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Don’t think, feel,” Chie muttered to herself. She had this. She just needed to let her body guide her.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>She lashed out with the scooper, hitting the water right beside the fish before pulling up underneath it. For an instant, she had the fish perfectly balanced in the center of the scooper. Then the paper broke and sent the fish back into the water.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Chie frowned. “Wait, what?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I think I get it,” Yukiko said. Before Chie could say anything to stop her, she leaned over the pool in turn, aiming for the fish that had just escaped Chie. Her movements were slower than Chie’s had been, more deliberate, and before long she’d caught the fish in her scooper and was tossing it into their bowl.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I did it!” Yukiko turned to Chie, beaming with excitement.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Chie laughed breathlessly. “That was amazing! You’re a natural.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Yukiko looked into the bowl with a thoughtful expression. “I think he looks like a Toyotomi. Don’t you agree?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Chie snorted. “I will never understand your obsession with general names.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You don’t think he could unify a country?” Yukiko held the bowl out to Chie, as if a closer look would clear things up.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Chie leaned in dutifully, but all she saw was an ordinary goldfish. “He’s a fish.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Sure, he’s a fish now, but what if he swims up a waterfall? He could turn into a dragon, and then he’d be more powerful than the prime minister,” Yukiko said.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Chie fought a brief but fierce internal battle to not make a </span>
  <em>
    <span>Trial of the Dragon </span>
  </em>
  <span>joke. There weren’t any actual dragons in the movie, so it would have been a stretch no matter how she spun it. It was a great movie, though. “I don’t think this tiny goldfish is making it up a waterfall anytime soon,” she said instead.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Not if you don’t believe in him.” Yukiko tilted the bowl back towards herself. “I think he’s going to grow up to be big and strong.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Wait, really?” Chie did some quick mental calculations about the size of her house, her relative ability to keep Muku out of fish tanks, and the fates of the last three goldfish she’d won. “That might be a problem.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“How fast do goldfish grow?” Yukiko asked. “Maybe we could move him into the river or something.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“But what if Yu caught him without realizing it?” Their leader’s love of fishing was as well-documented as it was baffling, at least in Chie’s opinion.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Oh. You’re right…” Yukiko looked down at the fish morosely. “Maybe he’d be happier if we let him go now.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Probably,” Chie said, trying not to sound too relieved. “Sorry that you didn’t get to form a bond with him or whatever, though.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“It’s okay.” Yukiko tipped the fish into the water, where it swam away as quickly as its fins could carry it. “I didn’t get a fish, but I did get to spend time with you, and that’s much nicer.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“O-oh.” Chie tried not to fidget. Given the burst of energy that flooded her when Yukiko said that, it was a losing battle. “Yeah. Me too. Or, wait-”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I know.” Yukiko smiled.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Chie was so lucky, she thought for the billionth time that evening. Even when she made no sense, Yukiko understood her. And maybe she didn’t understand Yukiko’s sense of humor, or her intensity about dumb festival games, but she liked to think she understood the important parts of Yukiko too.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>She decided to express her feelings of warmth and affection in the best way she knew. “I think I saw the yakisoba merchant a little farther on,” she said. “It’s time to get some meat!”</span>
</p>
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